Scott Gormley

Can you tell me what inspired you to create Danseur?

“I have a son who is currently a professional dancer at Portland Ballet in Maine. When he discovered that he wanted to start exploring dance, we really kind of encouraged him to try every form of dance. So he started, like most boys do, in a hip hop class, and then explored tap, jazz, and modern, and eventually falling in love with ballet. When he started sharing this information with his friends, he became alienated. They really distanced themselves from him and basically pushed him away for no reason other than the fact that he loved to dance. Suddenly he felt like he was an outcast…It really was an interesting phenomenon to me that we live in a very progressive area of the country, and yet this still happened. It's not like we live in the midwest, where this would be an expected outcome…So, I did what every person does whenever they have a problem and they don't know the answer, they google it, right?...At the time, I was toying with the idea of producing a documentary, believe it on sports, and I was having a conversation with a friend of mine, and we were just discussing this situation that was going on with my son, and he had a son who was also into the arts, and we were making parallels to what they were going through. And it just was like a eureka moment that this was really the film I needed to make. This was something that I needed to dive deeper into. So, I just started doing more and more and more and more research…I actually ended up posting a message to a Facebook group, and it blew up…suddenly I had people reaching out to me to share their experiences of what they had gone through, whether it be similar to what my son was going through or completely different. So, that's really how I fell into the issue…Now, my son was never featured in the film because I didn't want to make the film about him. I didn't want this to be one dad's story about his son. I wanted this to really address the broader topic, which was the stigma that boys are facing when they want to dance. [A stigma that] has existed forever and will continue to be perpetuated…unless we decide to do something about it.”

What did you learn through the process of creating this film about the dance world or the experiences of male ballet dancers in particular? Did the whole process of creating this film change your perception in any ways?

“I started [Danseur] with a very specific notion that this was an American problem. I really thought that this problem lied in America’s stereotypical ideal of a “Marlboro Man,” and false perception of what manhood should be. But as I dove deeper and started speaking to people around the world, it became very apparent to me that this is a much bigger problem. It was not just an American problem. I was hearing similar stories in my conversations with people that grew up in Mexico or Eastern Europe, and that, to me, was very eye opening…I screened [Danseur] in Guatemala and heard stories from the boys there that they were ruthlessly bullied for being dancers. And it was really very interesting. I didn't think that would be the case, because, in Latin cultures, at least, it seemed to think that there would be a little bit more respect for the arts.”

What was the biggest challenge that you had creating this documentary? If you had to do it again, is there anything that you would have done differently or built upon?

“The community was fabulous. But, money. Money, honestly, was the biggest challenge."

What was the overall response of Danseur? What comments did you receive from the ballet community, male dancers, and the broader community?

“I would say it was overwhelmingly positive…Most people either wanted to participate or wanted to screen or wanted to spread the message, whether it be on social media or locally…Hearing that kind of response was very rewarding.”

Would you ever be interested in creating a follow-up or a sequel to Danseur?

“I've definitely thought about it. Whether I go back to the same dancers that I interviewed to see how things had progressed or changed or talk to the next generation of dancers, I definitely think there's something there. I think there's something to be said to see whether or not there's been progress made.”

find more information about Scott Gormley's documentary Danseur here

interview by William McClure Stout